EU car markets see “solid growth” in July

Brussels - The EU new-car market continued its growth trajectory, expanding by 15.2% year-on-year in July, marking a 12th consecutive month of gains.

New-car registrations reached 851,156 units as the bloc recovered from last year’s component shortages, reported the European Automobile Manufacturers’ Association (ACEA) 30 Aug.

Most markets posted “solid growth”, including the four largest: led by France at 20%, and followed by Germany at 18%, Spain at 10.7% and Italy at 8.7%.

Over the first seven months of the year, new-car registrations were up 17.6% year-on-year, totalling 6.3 million units.

Double-digit gains were observed in most markets during the seven-month period, including in Spain (+21.9%), Italy (+20.9%), France (+15.8%), and Germany (+13.6%).

However, despite indications of a recovery from pandemic-related supply-chain disruptions, year-to-date volumes remained 22% lower than in 2019, ACEA noted.

During the month of July, the market share of battery-electric cars rose to 13.6%, up from 9.8% recorded for the same month last year.

Hybrid-electric cars maintained their position as the second most popular choice among new-car buyers, capturing over a quarter of the market.

The EU petrol car market grew by 5%, reaching 304,903 units during the month, though market-share fell to 35.8%, from 39.3% a year ago.

Diesel-car registrations continued to decline, 9% down year-on-year, despite growth in certain markets, including Germany, Slovakia and Romania.

Diesel cars now account for a market share of 14.1%, down from 17.9% in July last year.